pickled veggies

We have a new addiction: refrigerator pickled veggies. We’ve always been big fans of regular refrigerator pickles (our favorite recipes to come once the cucs start coming), but this year, I had one week where I inadvertently ordered 20+ pounds of carrots and way too much cauliflower from the co-op. It turned out to be a very fortuitous mistake because I experimented with pickling them both – and they were delicious, easy, and addicting!

1-2 pounds carrots, peeled and trimmed into long sticks (so long as they fit in your jar)
or 1 head cauliflower, trimmed and cut into bite-sized pieces

Optional additions: small onion (sliced), jalapeno (sliced)

Directions

Pour the water, vinegar, salt and spices into a small saucepan. As it comes to a boil, pack your veggies and garlic into a freshly washed jar.

Bring the brine to a boil, then pour it into the veggie-packed jar, leaving about 1/2 inch of headspace. Screw a lid on the jar and let it cool down. (The lid may seal during the cooling process, but this doesn’t mean that it’s safe to store outside of the fridge). Once the jar has cooled, put it in the fridge. I like to wait 2-3 days to eat up so that the veggies have time to absorb the flavors. They should last about 3-4 weeks in the fridge, but ours never last that long.

Easy tip: once you’ve eaten all of the veggies out of the jar, just add more veggies in the existing brine, adding a bit more brine based on the directions above if/when needed. We can usually get two uses out of one batch of brine before having to make more.

The next recipe reminds me of bread and butter pickles. Growing up, my favorite after-school snack was to make a sandwich out of bread and butter pickle slices and cheddar cheese. These seem like a grown up version.

1 pound carrots, peeled and trimmed into long sticks or sliced into “coins” – your choice

Directions

Prep your carrots and set aside. Bring the brine ingredients to a boil. Add the sliced vegetables to your clean jars. Top off the jars with the brine. Let cool, and then put in the fridge. (Alternatively, these can be processed for ten minutes in a boiling water bath).